Government Campaign Platform Support with DXW and GDS

Context

Vu Digital supported DXW and the Government Digital Service on their WordPress multisite platform used to deliver high profile government campaign sites, including Prepare.campaign.gov.uk and MakingTaxDigital.campaign.gov.uk.

These sites often need to be launched at pace, so the publishing environment must be intuitive, consistent, and aligned with GDS design standards.

The Challenge

Although the multisite allowed teams to spin up new campaigns quickly, each site began as an almost blank canvas.

Editors were unsure how to structure content, and design consistency across campaigns was difficult to maintain.

GDS supplied Figma templates, but these needed to be translated into a practical, easy to use system inside WordPress.

Our Contribution

Vu Digital converted the GDS design work into a set of fully configured block patterns that gave editors an immediate starting point for any new campaign.

Instead of facing an empty screen, they could insert a complete layout that reflected GDS guidance.

This significantly reduced friction, accelerated content creation, and ensured visual consistency across the platform.

As the design system evolved, GDS introduced new colour palettes that needed to be implemented without compromising existing sites.

Vu Digital created a controlled approach that allowed new colours to be used safely on new campaigns while preventing unexpected changes on legacy ones.

This feature flag approach protected accessibility and maintained the integrity of live content.

To support all teams working across the multisite, Vu Digital added an embedded training library using Loom.

This placed short, focused training videos directly into the WordPress admin, providing an immediate reference point for editors and offering a simple onboarding path for new users.

Impact

The platform became noticeably easier to use, more consistent in its presentation, and more resilient for future campaigns.

GDS editors gained a clearer workflow, faster setup process, and a reliable set of design patterns that removed uncertainty and improved quality.

For DXW and GDS, the enhancements strengthened the overall publishing environment, supporting rapid communication at moments when clarity and speed are essential.